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A review by jennifer_c_s
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
‘There’s a lot under the surface of life, everyone knows that. A lot of malice and dread and guilt, and so much loneliness, where you wouldn’t really expect to find it, either.’
Yes, I am late to reading this novel which was first published in 2004. Many friends have recommended it highly and so I finally picked it up.
This was a slow read for me: a reflective epistolary novel in the form of both journal and memoir. This is the story of John Ames, an elderly Congregationalist pastor in the aptly named (fictional)town of Gilead in Iowa. The novel opens in 1956, when Reverend Ames is aged seventy-six.
‘The fact is, I don’t want to be old. And I certainly don’t want to be dead. I don’t want to be the tremulous coot you barely remember.’
Aware that the end of his life is approaching because of a heart condition, Reverend Ames focusses on the legacy he will leave for his seven-year-old son. Much of the novel is the long letter he writes, reflecting on his faith, his past and the history of his family. I found Reverend Ames’s accounts of his grandfather, an abolitionist preacher who fought in the American Civil War, particularly interesting. His father, also a preacher, was a pacifist disillusioned by violence. Amid the descriptive passages about people and life are some beautifully written observations of nature.
I kept reading. Reverend Ames reflects on his friendship with Boughton, a Presbyterian minister. Towards the end of the novel Boughton’s son, John Ames Boughton (known as Jack, and considered a prodigal son) returns to Gilead. Reverend Ames is wary of Jack, but when they finally speak, he learns of Jack’s suffering and can offer him a blessing.
Reverend Ames’s reflections on life, on the relationships between fathers and sons captured and held my interest. While I was less interested in his religious and theological views, I recognised their importance in his life.
Yes, definitely a book worth reading.
‘I’ll pray that you grow up a brave man in a brave country. I will pray you find a way to be useful.’
‘I’ll pray, and then I’ll sleep.’
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Yes, I am late to reading this novel which was first published in 2004. Many friends have recommended it highly and so I finally picked it up.
This was a slow read for me: a reflective epistolary novel in the form of both journal and memoir. This is the story of John Ames, an elderly Congregationalist pastor in the aptly named (fictional)town of Gilead in Iowa. The novel opens in 1956, when Reverend Ames is aged seventy-six.
‘The fact is, I don’t want to be old. And I certainly don’t want to be dead. I don’t want to be the tremulous coot you barely remember.’
Aware that the end of his life is approaching because of a heart condition, Reverend Ames focusses on the legacy he will leave for his seven-year-old son. Much of the novel is the long letter he writes, reflecting on his faith, his past and the history of his family. I found Reverend Ames’s accounts of his grandfather, an abolitionist preacher who fought in the American Civil War, particularly interesting. His father, also a preacher, was a pacifist disillusioned by violence. Amid the descriptive passages about people and life are some beautifully written observations of nature.
I kept reading. Reverend Ames reflects on his friendship with Boughton, a Presbyterian minister. Towards the end of the novel Boughton’s son, John Ames Boughton (known as Jack, and considered a prodigal son) returns to Gilead. Reverend Ames is wary of Jack, but when they finally speak, he learns of Jack’s suffering and can offer him a blessing.
Reverend Ames’s reflections on life, on the relationships between fathers and sons captured and held my interest. While I was less interested in his religious and theological views, I recognised their importance in his life.
Yes, definitely a book worth reading.
‘I’ll pray that you grow up a brave man in a brave country. I will pray you find a way to be useful.’
‘I’ll pray, and then I’ll sleep.’
Jennifer Cameron-Smith